Upcoming Event Information

The West Point Band will present a free concert in celebration of our nation’s birthday. The concert will include the music of John Philip Sousa as well as other patriotic favorites. The band will close the concert with a performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture featuring fireworks and live cannon. The concert is free and open to all on Saturday, July 4th at 8:00 p.m. In the event of inclement weather, the concert will be Sunday, July 5th at 8:00 p.m.

Sixteen cannon shots are written into the score of the 1812 Overture. The piece opens with the plaintive Russian Orthodox Troparion of the Holy Cross “God Preserve Thy People” played by the woodwinds. The overture moves through a mixture of pastoral and military themes portraying the increasing distress of the Russian people at the hands of the invading French under Napoleon. The piece includes a Russian folk dance, "At the Gate, at my Gate." At the turning point of the invasion, the Battle of Borodino, the score calls for five Russian cannon shots confronting a boastfully repetitive fragment of La Marseillaise, the French National Anthem. A descending woodwind passage represents the subsequent retreat of the French forces, followed by victory bells and a triumphant repetition of “God Preserve Thy People” as Moscow burns to deny winter quarters to the French. A musical chase ensues, out of which emerges the anthem "God Save the Tsar!" thundering with eleven more precisely scored shots. The overture utilizes counterpoint to reinforce the appearance of the leitmotif that represents the Russian forces throughout the song.

Please allow extra travel time for the 100% vehicle and photo I.D. inspection at Stony Lonesome and Thayer gates. Due to changing security requirements at West Point, call the Academy Band’s hotline at 845-938-2617, or check www.westpoint.edu/special before leaving for the concert.

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

INCLEMENT CALL: Will be made at Noon on 4 July. If it is called inclement, the concert will move to 5 July at the same time and place (8 p.m., Trophy Point Amphitheatre). Please call 845-938-2617 or check this page for information.

HANDICAPPED PARKING: Off Washington Road across from Battle Monument (the large polished granite column at Trophy Point)

HANDICAPPED RESERVE AREA: Approach Battle Monument and find this area on the sidewalk to the left as you look at the concert amphitheatre stage. This site is level with Washington Road.

BENCH SEATING: Is occupied during this concert, only grassy areas are open to the public. The Plain (where cadets often march, is off-limits to concert-goers).

WASHINGTON ROAD: Will be blocked at 7:30 p.m. Plan ahead and arrive early for this event.

West Point Band
Trophy Point Concert Series:
Music Under the Stars
Jazz Knights to Perform
the Music of Michael Abene

The West Point Band’s Jazz Knights will continue the Music Under the Stars season at Trophy Point with the music of Michael Abene on Sunday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m. It will feature a number of compositions and arrangements by the composer such as the Horace Silver tune Sister Sadie written for the GRP All-Star Big Band; Fox Hunt written for Maynard Ferguson; Gershwin’s For You, For Me, Forevermore written for the WDR Big band; and I Wished on the Moon.

This is a concert tribute to the music of Michael Abene. He is a composer, arranger, keyboard player, and record producer. Michael joined the Maynard Ferguson band while still a teenager and was responsible for writing some of his most requested arrangements. Some other artists for which Michael has composed/arranged for are Dave Grusin, for which he received a 1998 Grammy nomination for the arrangement of America from Dave Grusin Presents West Side Story; Chick Corea; Buddy Rich; Dizzy Gillespie; the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra; Liza Minnelli; Charles Aznavour; Dave Taylor; Ronnie Cuber; the Metropole Jazz Orchestra in the Netherlands; and the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band. This concert is free and open to the public.

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

Jazz Knights Perform with
Saxophonist Antonio Hart

On Sunday, July 19 at 7:30 p.m. the West Point Band’s Jazz Knights will present a concert with special guest saxophonist Antonio Hart at Trophy Point Amphitheatre. The concert is free and open to the public.

Active on the New York jazz scene since the early 1990’s, Antonio Hart has made seven recordings as a leader, the latest on the Chiaroscuro label entitled All We Need. He has performed or recorded with jazz masters Dizzy Gillespie, Jimmy Heath, Dave Holland, Nancy Wilson, McCoy Tyner, and many others, appearing as a guest on over eighty recordings. Hart earned a Bachelor of Music from Berklee College in Boston, where he met trumpeter Roy Hargrove, who invited Hart to perform in his quintet. While touring the world with Hargrove, Hart earned a master’s degree from the Aaron Copland School of Music, Queens College, in Queens, New York, where he is now a professor in the jazz studies division.

The program will feature music written and arranged by Hart, such as the original compositions Down and Up and Like My Own, and the standard Stars Fell on Alabama. Members of the Jazz Knights will also contribute arrangements to the program and be featured as soloists.

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

Music Under the Stars
Dances of Enchantment

The West Point Concert Band will perform a concert featuring the dance music of Claude Debussy, Leroy Anderson, Dimitri Shostakovich, George Gershwin, Igor Stravinsky and others. The concert is free and open to the public at the Trophy Point Amphitheater on Sunday, July 26th at 7:30 p.m.

The band will close the concert with the Berceuse and Finale from Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird, which was originally a ballet based on Russian folk tales of the magical, glowing firebird that is both a blessing and a curse to its captor. The piece ends in triumphal brass statements and musical fireworks for the whole band.

Sergeant First Class Shawn Herndon will perform Claude Debussy’s Premiere Rhapsodie for solo clarinet and band. Also on the concert will be Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Dance Music from West Side Story, the popular musical based on Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

Sergeant First Class Mary Kay Messenger will perform music from My Fair Lady and He Loves and She Loves, written in 1927 by George Gershwin for the musical, Funny Face.

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

Gary Sinise and his Lt. Dan Band
to Perform at West Point

The West Point Band will present a concert celebrating the “Year of the NCO” on Sunday, August 2 at 7:30 p.m. at Eisenhower Hall. Highlighting the performance will be Gary Sinise and his Lt. Dan Band performing a number of selections. This concert is free and open to the public.

In addition to the Lt. Dan Band, the Concert Band will present a portion of the performance. Highlights include Liberty Fanfare by John Williams, Henry Fillmore’s Americans We, and Fantasy on Army Strong by Mark Isham. Additionally, the Concert Band will perform Shenandoah - Ragged Old Flag with narration provided by Gary Sinise.

Actor and musician Gary Sinise currently stars in the CBS show CSI: NY. Some of his film credits include: Apollo 13, Truman, The Green Mile, and Forrest Gump, for which he was nominated for an academy award. The foundation for Sinise’s Lt. Dan Band was was laid in 2003, and in 2004 they made their first overseas USO tour. Since that first overseas tour, in the past five years Gary Sinise and the band have played an average of 30-40 shows per year.

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

Click here for a hi-res version of this photo

Click here for the Lt. Dan Band Website

Click here to download the Concert Program

Click here to download the Concert Program (printable on legal size paper)

Click here to download the Concert Poster

2009 - Year of the NCO
Since 1775, the Army has set apart its NCOs from other enlisted Soldiers by distinctive insignia of grade. With more than 200 years of service, the U.S. Army’s Noncommissioned Officer Corps has distinguished itself as the world’s most accomplished group of military professionals. Historical and daily accounts of life as an NCO are exemplified by acts of courage, and a dedication and a willingness to do whatever it takes to complete the mission. NCOs have been celebrated for decorated service in military events ranging from Valley Forge to Gettysburg, to charges on Omaha Beach and battles along the Ho Chi Minh Trail, to current conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. In recognition of their commitment to service and willingness to make great sacrifices on behalf of our Nation, Secretary of the Army established 2009 as Year of the NCO. We invite you to join the celebration of one of America’s greatest assets, the NCO Corps, the backbone of the American Army.

Gary Sinise
Gary Sinise attended high school in Highland Park, IL, where he played in several local bands. As a lark, he and some friends tried out for the school production of West Side Story, which hooked Sinise on an acting career. He made his professional acting debut at the age of 17 in a 1973 production of The Physicist. When he graduated in 1974 from Highland Park High School, Sinise and some high school friends soon founded the now famous Steppenwolf Theatre Company, which moved into the basement of the Immaculate Conception School and Church in Highland Park. In 1980, the growing company moved to Chicago, and in 1991, Steppenwolf opened its own complex.

It didn't take long for Gary's career to head west to Hollywood, where he acted in shows such as General Hospital and Knots Landing, but soon returned to Chicago and the stage, where he earned critical acclaim for his staging of Sam Shepard's True West. He returned to Hollywood, and began directing episodic television, such as thirtysomething and Crime Story.

Sinise went back and forth between Hollywood and the Chicago stage, where he made his film directorial debut with the 1988 movie Miles from Home, and earned a Tony nomination for his Broadway appearance in The Grapes of Wrath.

It was film work, however, that brought Sinise into the public eye. He starred in the successful Stephen King miniseries The Stand, and was seen around the world in the highly acclaimed film Forrest Gump, which earned him many awards as well as an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. More film work followed in Tom Hanks' Apollo 13; in the biopic Truman; and the sci-fi thriller Mission to Mars, to name a few.

As well as being active in the entertainment field, Gary Sinise also uses his considerable talents to support troops stationed overseas. Along with his Lt. Dan Band (named for his character from Forrest Gump), Sinise has embarked on numerous USO/Armed Forces Entertainment (AFE) tours. In February 2004, he entertained troops in Diego Garcia, Singapore and Korea. Last year, Sinise went to tours in Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Germany, Italy and Fort Stewart, Ga. He has also traveled to both Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and the National Navy Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., to visit troops wounded in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He has recently co-founded Operation Iraqi Children with Seabiscuit: An American Legend author Laura Hillenbrand, an effort to help educate Iraqi children.

Gary's credits are extensive, spanning over three decades, and involve both acting and directing. Besides being a co-founder of the Steppenwolf Theatre, he was also the Artistic Director from 1980-82 and 1985-86.

His stage credits include: (Acting) One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, A Streetcar Named Desire, The Grapes of Wrath, The Caretaker, True West, Streamers, Loose Ends, Of Mice and Men, Balm in Gilead, The Collection, The Caretaker, The 5th of July, Sandbar Flatland, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, Mack, Anything Goes Over the Rainbow, The Indian Wants the Bronx, The Sea Horse. (Directing) Buried Child, Road to Nirvana, Frank's Wild Years, Orphans, Tracers, The Miss Firecracker Contest, True West, Waiting for the Parade, Action.

His film credits include: (Acting) The Big Bounce, The Human Stain, A Gentleman's Game, Imposter, Mission to Mars, Reindeer Games, The Green Mile, It's the Rage, Bruno, Snake Eyes, Ransom, Apollo 13, Forrest Gump, Of Mice and Men. (Directing) Of Mice and Men, Miles From Home.

His television credits include: Fallen Angel, That Championship Season, George Wallace, Truman, The Stand. (Directing) Crime Story, China Beach, thirtysomething. He currently stars on CBS in CSI:NY (Wednesdays, 9 PM CST on CBS).

His producer credits are Imposter, Of Mice and Men, That Championship Season (TV), and currently CSI:NY.

He has won numerous awards, including: Golden Globe, Cable Ace and SAG award (Truman), Screen Actors Guild Award, Emmy Award and Cable ACE Award (George Wallace), National Board of Review Award (Forrest Gump), Academy Award nomination (Forrest Gump). For theater, his nominations include Tony nominations for acting in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest and The Grapes of Wrath and for directing Sam Shepard’s Buried Child.

His awards include an Obie award for directing Sam Shepard’s True West and a Joseph Jefferson award for Best supporting actor in Getting Out by Marsha Norman.

Lieutenant Dan Band
It was 1997 when Gary Sinise and Kimo Williams first met and worked together on the Steppenwolf Theatre production of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire. Williams was hired by director Terry Kinney to compose the score for the play and Sinise, a co-founder of Steppenwolf along with Terry Kinney, was playing the role of Stanley Kowalski. It was during the technical rehearsals for the play that Gary and Kimo began to discuss their love for music and after learning of Gary's talents on the bass, Kimo invited him to his home for a jam session. Over the next few years, whenever possible, these two pals would play together with other Chicago area musicians and in 2003, as Gary began what has turned out to be an extraordinary commitment to the USO, it became clear that those early jam sessions had laid the foundation for what would become The Lieutenant Dan Band.

Following one of his many trips overseas to visit those serving our country, Gary asked the USO if they would allow him to take a band with him on a tour. The USO agreed, the band began rehearsing and in February of 2004, The Lieutenant Dan Band hit the road on their first overseas USO tour to Korea, Singapore and Diego Garcia. Since those early sessions at Kimo’s house, a few gigs for the troops in the Chicago area in 2003, and that first overseas tour, in the past five years Gary and the band have played an average of 30-40 shows per year with a good 75% of those shows for USO, charities or benefits.

The Name "Lieutenant Dan" is the character Gary portrayed in the 1994 film Forrest Gump, a role for which he earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. As Gary began visiting troops around the world, people (even little kids) who didn't know him as Gary Sinise, the actor, would recognize him as "Lt. Dan". Those in the military also seem to identify strongly with the character. The name for his group was an easy choice: Lt. Dan Band!

The Music the Lt. Dan Band covers everything from Springsteen to Linkin Park, from Aretha to Hendrix. There's something for everyone, and each show highlights the musical diversity of the band, as well as the passion and energy each member brings to the stage. Whether we're performing for troops overseas or a local club crowd, the goal is to have fun and rock the house!

For concert information, cancellations and updates,
call the Academy Band’s 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

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For concert information, cancellations and updates call the Academy Band's 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.

For concert information, cancellations and updates
call the Academy Band's 24-hour hotline at (845) 938-2617.